One of my player's has a character with family that has a long-standing feud with a powerful fae entity. I'm wanting to have that entity dispatch a quickling to kill the offending character. I'm not sure there is a quickling in the M&T of CM books but I have the entry from the 2nd Edition Monstrous Manual. In it, quicklings are 100% invisible while standing still and 90% invisible when moving. Combined with a 23 AC that's going to be extremely hard to hit, which is by design, I'm certain. It's one weakness is that it is a single hit die creature.

I want the combat with this creature to be fast paced and exciting. I don't want it to devolve into "You fail to see the creature. It hits you." over and over again. That's frustrating and boring for characters. Anyone here used a quickling before and have some advice or dealt with invisible enemies in an interesting way?

Thanks

_________________Never underestimate the power of stupid people in a large group.

You do not need to see something to hit it... if its in melee combat the penalty is steep but not impossible. Second, Is the 23 AC the result of not seeing? Then you must hit that AC without more no see penalties... if you see the AC become typical like 15 or so. I think "invisible" opponent is like +10 to AC or at least +6... so take that away from the 23 and you can hit it... so hard to hit unless you get lucky and see it, then easy to hit... seems fair, you only have to hit it once, do any damage and it will cut bait and flee.. nothing kills itself for a payment... it will believe it is safe until it take damage... area affect nails it pretty well.

_________________Wow, Another Natural One! You guys are a sink hole for luck. Stay away from my dice.

Tue Dec 04, 2018 2:24 am

Lurker

Greater Lore Drake

Joined: Thu Jan 18, 2007 8:00 amPosts: 3777Location: Oklahoma

Re: Quicklings and invisibility

Captain_K wrote:

You do not need to see something to hit it... if its in melee combat the penalty is steep but not impossible. Second, Is the 23 AC the result of not seeing? Then you must hit that AC without more no see penalties... if you see the AC become typical like 15 or so. I think "invisible" opponent is like +10 to AC or at least +6... so take that away from the 23 and you can hit it... so hard to hit unless you get lucky and see it, then easy to hit... seems fair, you only have to hit it once, do any damage and it will cut bait and flee.. nothing kills itself for a payment... it will believe it is safe until it take damage... area affect nails it pretty well.

Roger that

Plus, you as the DM could have a little fun with it - remember it is fay and chaotic.

Have it attack from surprise, the PCs being flat footed, then once the PCs know they are targets, have it laugh loudly form one spot, then quietly invisibility move to another, and then show itself, attack, and disappear again. have it move around for a bit and not attack for a few rounds, then attack again. Play up the cat and mouse for a while.

Also, after a bit give the players perception/wisdom (how ever you handle noticing things) check after the attack or during the round or 2 of cat and mouse movement. Invisible is not unnoticeable ... a foot print here, a scrape of a weapon on a tree there, a tug of a cloak on a bush to the right. Again, build the suspense. However, don't make it impossible, give them a chance to be a little focused and not just wonder around swinging at random and hoping to hit that 23 AC with only luck.

Plus, like Capt K said, area effects ... you don't have to see something to fire ball it ! But also, a good hand full of ashes from the evening fire - could cover the little bugger and defeat the invisibility power, could blind the critter and even the odds, or at least cover an area and deny that area from the fey and not let it run through it without leaving tracks in the ash and foot prints after he leaves it - is a good area effect that the party's fighter or rogue could easily use.

Then, it isn't a fight to the death ... the quickling could kill the party with a thousand little cuts, but at 1 HD, a good hit from the party could put it on deaths door. So, once there have been a few close calls or a hit on the fey assassin it will exfil and may or may not come back for round 2 or 3.

I remember back in the day, good lord now that I think of it, WAY BACK when I was in high school, a similar situation with the party I was playing with and a twisted DM who loved a mean little vindictive leprechaun ... We quickly learned to HATE that thing ! Eventually even the party thief would just leave his best gem or a hand full of gold out when we were in an area the leprechaun was know or expected to be in, and let it take its 'green tax' without emptying all our packs, cutting our bag bottoms, untying our horses etc.

_________________"And so I am become a knight of the Kingdom of Dreams and Shadows!" - Mark Twain

Forgive all spelling errors.

Knight Errant & Humble C&C Society ContributorC&C Society

Wed Dec 05, 2018 12:51 am

Captain_K

Greater Lore Drake

Joined: Sun Dec 29, 2013 10:37 pmPosts: 2130Location: North Coast

Re: Quicklings and invisibility

A good DM can make a party HATE a monster... I mean hate... we had a DM who wanted to play the Solar when it came out in the dragon so he let us play "any class, and mix of classes, any race, no level limits, etc...." seems like Christmas to us.. we had all sorts of 2,000,000 ex pt PCs ready to go... oh and we each got to pick on artifact level MI plus almost any DMG MI.... anyway... we met the Solar at the front door and battled that bastard non-stop all summer... hated that thing.... made me curse the author's name... and you know the sacrilege that is now... so yeah,be that evil nasty CK and make that quickling hound them! but always give them hope they can win.. without ever doing it.... "Hate and love are 30 seconds apart!"

_________________Wow, Another Natural One! You guys are a sink hole for luck. Stay away from my dice.

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 1 guest

You cannot post new topics in this forumYou cannot reply to topics in this forumYou cannot edit your posts in this forumYou cannot delete your posts in this forumYou cannot post attachments in this forum